Wednesday 10 December at 12:00 : Dec.10 (GMM) Sebastien Bourdais has conceded that retaining his seat at Toro Rosso in 2009 has become a race to find some personal backing

The Frenchman has this week travelled to Jerez, where at the Spanish circuit he is again facing off against his main challenger for the drive, Takuma Sato

Bourdais told Germany's Auto Motor und Sport at Jerez: "I'm on the lookout, but in the current economic crisis, it is difficult to find money, and not just in France."nnIt is believed that at least some of team owner Red Bull's interest in Sato, the 31-year-old Japanese, is his potential ability to promote the energy drink in the burgeoning Japanese market

On top of that, it is rumoured that the veteran of approaching 100 grands prix is already offering personal sponsorship to Toro Rosso in the form of a double-digit million euro sum

"There are so many stories," Bourdais explained, "but the fact is that even in Japan you don't just find money on the street."n